EXCLUSIVE: Fraud Rocks AfDB Funded $134 million Agric Programme, NAGS-AP
Agricultural input suppliers in Nigeria have raised the alarm over the “apparent diversion of funds” meant for payment to agro-input suppliers by some senior government officials at the National Agricultural Growth Scheme – Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP) led by it National Project Coordinator, Mr. Ishaku Ardo Buba in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.
The NAGS-AP programme is an African Development Bank (AfDB) funded project aimed at boosting food security through the production of major staple crops in select African countries including Kenya, Ethiopia, Nigeria among many other African countries.
Nigeria secured a loan of $134 million from the AfDB in July 2022 with the first tranche of $100 million released to the Nigerian Government in September 2022 through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture [and Food Security]. The funds were released ahead of the 2023/2024 farming season to enable the government through NAGS-AP procure and distribute farm inputs to Nigerian smallholder farmers across selected states. After the successful implementation of the programme for the 2023/2024 farming season, the AfDB released the second tranche of the loan amounting to $34million.
However, despite the release of all the funds to the Nigerian government, the NAGS-AP office that coordinates the programme has failed to pay agro-input suppliers across the country 15 months after they delivered inputs for the programme.
The suppliers under the umbrella of the Nigeria Agro-Input Dealers Association (NAIDA) who secured and supplied agro inputs including modern farm implements, improved seedlings, fertilizers and herbicides have for the past 15 months frequented the Headquarters of NAGS-AP located at 64, Emeka Anyaoku Street, Area 11, Garki Abuja, yet no payment has been made to its members.
Endless Stories, Empty Promises
The agro-dealers led by their National President, Mallam Kabir Umar Fara have since mid-2024 frequented the NAGS-AP headquarters, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security as well as the Federal Ministry of Finance to secure the payment of the debts owed its members to no a avail.
FACTSHEET investigations revealed that NAIDA has also officially written letters to all the ministries and the agency demanding the payment to its members, but each time they are given “assurances” that the outstanding payments will be cleared, but the promises were never kept.
In their latest letter dated September 4th, 2025 and addressed to the Minister of Finance, Mr. Wale Edunn seen by FACTSHEET, the association called on the minister to facilitate the immediate payment of the outstanding debts as the situation could jeopardize the state of emergency declared in agric sector by the federal government. The association revealed that, “It is on record that the implementation of the wheat programme in 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 seasons increased wheat production from 150,000 MT to 1.117, 188MT . Similarly, our efforts have stabilised staple food crops prices in the markets across the country and reduced the inflation on food prices too,” noting that the nonpayment of its members outstanding debt is a direct attack on food production in Nigeria.
Narrating their ordeal in the hands of the management of the NAGS-AP programme, the agro dealers pleaded with Mr. Wale Edun to urgently intervene on their plight.
“The Nigeria Agro input Dealers Association (NAIDA) wish to request your intervention on the above subject matter to save our souls based on the delay in the payment for the goods and services rendered to farmers all over the Federation under the NAGS-AP 2024 wet and dry seasons programme which has caused untold hardship to the suppliers and agro dealers that participated in the programme.
“Hon minister may wish to note that suppliers of agro input comprises manufacturers of seeds, fertilizers (organic and inorganic, crop chemicals and agricultural machinery/tractors. These supplies belong to Associations namely, Seeds Entrepreneurs Association of Nigeria (SEEDAN), Organic Fertilizer Producers and Suppliers Association of Nigeria (OFPSAN), Fertilizer Producers and Suppliers Association of Nigeria (FEPSAN). Crop Life Nigeria (CLN) and Agricultural Machinery and Tractor Association of Nigeria (AAMTAN)
“Hon minister may also wish to note that we have written to letters to the Hon minister of Agriculture and Food Security on this matter dated 27th Feb, 2025 and 23rd April. 2025 which were copied to the African Development Bank in view of the bank’s interest in the matter. …unfortunately, we did not receive any response to out letters till date, the letter read in part.
Ordeal of Agro-dealers
According to several of the NAIDA members that spoke to FACTSHEET, the continued nonpayment of the outstanding debts to them has incapacitated most of their members who rely on bank loans to sustain their business. They lamented that most of them who took short term loans from their banks have developed health challenges like high blood pressure due to harassments and threat of confiscating their properties by their financial institutions and cooperative societies.
In their letter to the Finance minister, the association noted that, “the default in payment by the government has impacted so badly on our members with particular reference to the negative credit reports, our members now have with their respective financial institutions which invariably has now prevented them from accessing any other finances to fund their businesses going forward.”
Apparent Diversion of Funds by Senior Government of Officials s
In a meeting the leadership of NAIDA had with the management of NAGS-AP with its National Programme Coordinator(NPC), Mr. Ishaku Ardo Buba in attendance that held on March 25, 2025 at the NAGS-AP headquarters in Abuja, the Agro-dealers were shell-shocked when the NPC reportedly told them that the Director of Finance in the agency had “mistakenly used the money earmarked for payment to agro dealers to pay for other items “not captured in the programme.”
The meeting which was at the instance of the leadership of the agro-dealers was necessitated by the discovery that the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security had approved all payments for every agro-dealer that had fulfilled their contract with the government.
Mallam Buba Ardo, however, pleaded profusely with the Agro-dealers with promises that his agency had already “commenced the reconciliation of accounts with the ministry to pay all the outstanding debts.
Six Months Later No payment
Despite the promises of the NAGS-AP coordinator, Mallam Ardo Buba in the March 25, 2025 meeting the agro dealers have not been paid at September 2025, six months after the funds were released by the ministry.
FACTSHEET checks reveal that, while the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security Mr. Temitope Peter Fashedemi was in December 2024 to the State House, the Director of Finance who diverted the agro-allied funds remains in the NAGS-AP agency.
